Connections
by Graq the Wild Child
Summary: The Galaxy Angels must vie against a power that can absorb universes. Only the bonds between the souls of those in the attacked universes can stop it. A crossover with many, many worlds.
1. An Opening

**  
Chapter One - An Opening**

Location: The Transvaal Empire

Five Emblem Frames coursed towards the Eden Era ruins their target was just about to reach. The target was a lone man named Justin, and he had just managed to pull off one of the most heinous of heists there could be in the Empire: He had pilfered the Lost Technology. According to their briefing it was a DNA virus capable of infecting anyone with genetic code reasonably close the to DNA sample given to it. Team Twin Star hadn't been considered because of this risk: if one of them got captured, they both would go down. More than one of the angels was smug about getting a chance to show up the precocious ten year old brothers.

"If you surrender now, you might avoid a life sentence. If you don't, you're in for a hell of a ride." the eldest of the troupe transmitted to the thief.

Forte Stollen was keeping a cool head and tight control of her trigger finger. If it were up to her judgment, she'd just as soon blow the bastard to dust and to hell with the virus maker. She knew it would cause nothing but pain and trouble if put in use. But it was their job to retrieve Lost Technology, no matter how bizarre, dangerous, or unhelpful it seemed.

"He's blocking all transmitions." Mint broadcast to her from aboard the Trick Master.

"Damn it he's landing!" Ranpha yelled through the holoscreen. "If it weren't for those stupid meteorites that came out of nowhere I would have caught up to him by now!"

It was probably true considering Ranpha's ship was the fastest of the five. Even though she had had to hang back for repairs from Vanilla's ship the Harvester, she was already the closest to Justin. Of course it was fairly disconcerting that the meteorites had damaged the Kung-Fu Fighter at all considering that Emblem Frames were armored against impact from space debris.

They were coming closer and closer to the ruins. As they approached they adjusted their flight paths to the landing coordinates Mint's ship was sending them. As Milfeulle nudged the Lucky Star to her left, her mind was filled with a warm and soft, yet powerful presence. The presence formed itself into words. This same presence was manifesting itself in the others, each of whom listened in awe.

_**My children, it is vital that you know what lies ahead. Please listen to what we, Shatoyan are about to tell you.**_

"The Moon Goddess?" Milfeulle said half questioningly.

"She's speaking in our hearts," Ranpha half answered, overcome by the enormity of the situation. The others stayed silent in rapt attention.

The Moon Goddess Shatoyan had come to the Planet Transvaal hundreds of years ago, bearing technology that enabled its people to resume space travel and communication. She had come in a strange space station known as the White Moon, the same place the angels now lived and worked. Although rarely seen in person, she stilled lived there to this day and was a semi-religious figure to the people of the Transvaal Empire. The White Moon nowadays was where all Lost Technology that was recovered was sent to be tested. If it was useful in someway, Shatoyan presented it as a gift to the people.

The members of the Galaxy Angel brigade had been chosen because they had the power to link up to the HALO piloting systems the Emblem Frames used. Only women had this power, and it was very rare. Both the HALOs and the Emblem Frames were Lost Technologies Shatoyan had given to the people. As pilots of such important technology, they were part of the larger group within the military who were considered priestesses of the Moon Goddess. However, because of the bizarre nature of the missions they ended up taking, this was often forgotten and they were looked on with disrespect by the rest of the military.

Now the Moon Goddess was calling on them directly, and they knew she wouldn't unless it was very serious indeed.

_**The abandoned space station you are coming upon has the potential to end all existence. The man who has entered it will soon find devices inside of it which can grant him power beyond anything he could dream. We have seen what is in his heart and know that he will take everything he can grasp. But the power he seeks must not be used! When last it was touched it ripped apart the universe, causing a calamity like none before or since. **_

"The Chrono Quake…" Mint spoke as though her breath had been taken from her. The Chrono Quake was the name given to the disaster that had occurred six hundred years ago, and had destroyed all interplanetary communication and transportation. Without communication and transportation, human civilization had been devastated and set back tremendously. From Vanilla's ship, Normad spoke solemnly.

' I remember. That's when I ended up in that junkyard. '

_**That was a mere touch. When used fully, it absorbs universes.**_

"Univers_es_?" Forte boggled, remembering the alternate Milfeulles that their base had once been flooded with. The station can absorb entire universes?

_**Yes, and those who made the device mapped out paths to several which interested them. They discovered that they could draw in elements of those universes to the station by using a soul from the other world. They kept the souls in sealed capsules and experimented, manifesting things from the captive's memories. The calamity occurred when they first attempted to use the ultimate power of the station: to absorb all universes connected to the station through the captured souls and remake the universe in the form they desired. They failed and the other universes were spared at the cost of the destruction of the connecting souls.**_

How do we stop him? Milfeulle asked, terrified at the prospect of people losing their souls in such a way. Shatoyan had given them glimpses of the manner in which this occurred: people, most relatively human, were put into egg like containers where they stood frozen completely still. Gradually the life left them as their souls were drained to power the creation of various things for the sake of the researchers who imprisoned them.

_**You six must travel to the universes the man Justin will find in the logs of those who preceded him. The devices he will find will enable him to send droids from the station to these worlds. He will control them with a machine much like your HALO piloting systems. With them he will look for those who know much of whatever powers lie within their universe and abduct them. For each world, he needs but one soul, and it will be his. You must find other souls with strong bonds to these souls and bring them with you. Only through a truly deep bond can the connectors be freed and their worlds saved. **_

_Six? But there are only five of us. _Ranpha thought to herself. The Moon Goddess apparently heard this thought.

_**The one you call Normad, he is a child of ours as well. **_

Three jaws dropped.

' Of course, Shatoyan-dono, I am yours to command. ' the computer said reverently.

_**This is his universe to lose and protect as much as it is yours. We give our plea to him as we do you my daughters, and like you he is free to refuse us. The universe's best hope lies with you, because you are here and you know to believe us.**_

The Goddess' presence was silent of words and images as the angels thought on the tremendous choice set before them.

"If it were anyone else I would call their bluff and refuse…" Ranpha told her teammates, sweat dripping down her brow.

"But how can we afford to? This is the gravest crisis anyone could imagine." Mint responded, her eyes clenched shut.

"But is it even something we're capable of? How are we supposed to find soul bonds, or travel between universes?" Forte said, a tinge of defeat already in her tone.

' Capable or not, we must do everything we can. It would be unthinkable to abdicate a responsibility as great as this! ' Normad retorted bitingly.

"Right! We're fighters for justice and peace! No one else is in as good a spot to stop this as we are!" Milfeulle declared spiritedly.

"It is our destiny." the youngest member Vanilla intoned. As each member of the Angel Brigade thought over their feelings, it certainly seemed like that was the case. They formed a silent consensus.

"Either way, I know I'm going to regret this…" the blond angel sighed.

"But it's better to regret doing something than it is to regret not doing something, right?" her red-headed friend said with a small smile.

_**Thank you my children. We shall lead you to that which you must obtain to carry out this mission. And grieve that no other way remains.** _

In each of the angels' minds, and in the databanks of Normad, images appeared of the station ahead of them. They showed a path to a spaceship hangar, and passed through it to a hallway. Through the hallways the images led them, to a large room with several oddly shaped objects and machines. They were led to an open briefcase-like container. Inside were tile-like octagons of a glassy green-black material and hexagons of a lime green.

_**These are affixers. They will link you to the Drone, the abducting droid, as it passes from world to world. It has many operational receiving affixers within it already from its previous journeys. To use them, you must touch the eight-sided sending affixers to your spines. They will painlessly sink in through your skin and attach themselves. Whenever the Drone passes through to another universe, it will leave behind a rip. You will have a few hours to follow it through this rip. The six-sided receiving affixers will go on your ribs, and you will use these to bring the people who will aid you to our universe. You can only bring one soul from each world due to the limits of this technology.**_

The phrase 'sink in through your skin' gave a few of the girls heebie jeebies. Normad hoped he wouldn't have to remember too much of this information for the sake of the others; humans were notoriously bad at following directions, save for Vanilla. The mental images moved away from the briefcase to a pile of small golden spheres next to it on the shelf.

_**These are universal translators. They are activated by swallowing. They will enable you to understand any language and to speak so that any who hear you will understand your words. **_

The visions left the orbs to focus on a machine much like a primitive blood pressure monitor. Above the area where one would insert their arm was a horizontal bar that appeared to be able to slide up and down, possibly to match the height of some part of a person's head.

_**This is the most important of all, the device that will give you the power to see the bonds between souls. These bonds will be thicker when stronger, and of different colors depending on the nature of the relationship. When you call upon the power, your arms will light up to show you what each color represents. The closer the color is to your wrist, the better a bond it is to use to break through the shell an entrapped soul will be encased in. You should take it in turns using this power, as it needs time to recharge.**_

The images left them, and they reoriented their flight paths to the hangar they had been shown. For several minutes they had all been drifting around the perimeter of the station as they listened.

_**Know that it will not be easy, nor are you guaranteed of success. But this task is achievable if you support each other and trust each other. Compassion, courage, reason, strength, and hope will guide you and be your greatest tools. Be well, my children.**_

Shatoyan's presence faded into an echo in their hearts. A few minutes later they came out of their ships and met at the exit of the hangar. Forte took the point position as they entered the first hallway.

"Not that I mind being told what to expect," the gunner said as she walked the path the visions had taken them down, "But that did give him a heck of head start on us."

"That's right!" Ranpha exclaimed indignantly, "We might have been able to grab him before he got to the devices at all if the Goddess had just spoken long enough to say it was urgent. I'm sure she had a good reason for giving us the long version, but what was it?"

"Well, suppose we had captured Justin without hearing the full extent of what lies in this station," Mint reasoned, "Can you honestly say none of us might have willingly or accidentally set off some of the devices ourselves? It is not as though we have an impeccable record with such things."

"Gomenasai!" Milfeulle blurted out, knowing that she had been the cause of several of those incidents.

"Humanity always suffers when it tampers with things it does not understand." Vanilla said sagely.

' How very true Vanilla! ' Normad gushed to the girl carrying him. ' If only others had your wisdom, such things as the Chrono Quake would not continue to occur. '

"Milfeulle, there's no need for you to apologize." the blue haired girl comforted her. "We've all made mistakes with the Lost Technology at times."

"But with Milfeulle around, accidents happen a lot more often," Ranpha whispered to her shortest teammate, a look of alarm on her face, "We can't just sit back and wait for her to trip or lean on something."

"Or get her head stuck in a hole." Mint agreed. "Let's put ourselves between her and anything that might go off in a moment of clumsiness." They began to walk along either side of her, with Forte in front and Vanilla behind them. The lucky girl wasn't too happy with this impromptu ceremonial guard.

"I'm not that clumsy! You guys are just being mean."

"We're here." Forte announced, hoping that there weren't any pointless arguments coming in their immediate future. She entered the room first, and after a moment's pause headed for the container with the affixers. She grabbed one of the darker octagons and scrutinized it. The thought of having it attached to her spine for an indefinite period of time wasn't that appealing, but far, far worse things had happened to her body in the past.

"Shatoyan-dono said it would go through the skin." Mint said contemplating Forte's thick coat. "I imagine it has to be applied when the skin is bare."

Forte watched the others stand motionless for a minute (except Vanilla, who was already swallowing a golden orb), and it became apparent that none of them were going to join in until she tried it first. _Cowards. _

"Grr, fine. If you're all going to be such wimps about it." Once she had disrobed enough to expose the needed areas she placed the first device over her spine. She kept her back turned to them so they'd have to witness whatever grossness the "sinking in" process entailed. The spot began to heat up, and become quite soft. Mint's ears stayed low and twitched uncomfortably and Ranpha looked a bit disturbed, but Milfeulle was utterly fascinated.

"Ooh, it's melting! It's just sliding right in!"

Eerily her skin closed up the hole as the affixer continued melting through muscle to attach itself to bone. Mint had to admire the simple genius of it. There were fewer more secure places to keep something than stuck to the skeleton.

"There, not painful at all." Forte said triumphantly.

"But plenty creepy." Ranpha added as she got ready to attach her own devices, a little miffed that she was looking cowardly compared to her senior partner. "Almost as creepy as how old that bra is. I can't imagine how many years it's been since you were a 38 D."

"Not as many years as they've been bigger than yours Ranpha."

' Um, I don't need to be hearing this. ' Normad said, a bit frightened of knowing anything more about Forte's considerably larger than average breasts. He was set down as Vanilla began to catch up to the others. ' Ulp… do not fear Vanilla-san, I'll avert my gaze. '

"That reminds me," Mint said, disappointed that the argument between the oldest angels hadn't escalated, "How is Normad going to use these when he has no bones?"

The troop surrounded him, and stared at him pondering. _For some reason I'm more frightened than when they surround me in fury. _

"We could stick something solid in his fluff, like a sheet of metal." the redhead suggested.

' Hey! '

"But we don't really have time to go looking for scrap metal now." the blonde countered reasonably.

"You could use one of your armbands Ranpha." Milfeulle offered cheerfully.

' Could you come up with an idea that doesn't involve roughly cramming something into me? '

"No way!" the martial artist retorted to the cook's idea angrily. "Do you know how hard it is to get training bands that look good with an outfit? Try it sometime!"

"Perhaps we should just experiment with his body as it is now." Mint offered.

' You all are impossibly rude! ' Normad fumed as Vanilla took one of the affixers from the container. ' Acting as if I'm not speaking to you while you plot to abuse my body! I… Vanilla-san?! What are you…?! '

Before their eyes, the device melted its way through the stuffed animal housing the missile guidance system. It stuck itself firmly to the computer chip that was his true form.

' Ugh! This is unpleasant, but I will bear it for the greater good. Eeh?? '

Vanilla began sticking the lighter hexagons on him, and soon almost the entire surface of the chip was covered.

' Thank you Vanilla-san! Such a thorough job! Now I should be able to take back more than my share of people. '

"Should we put on that many?" Milfeulle wondered, holding several hexagons in her hand.

"We should probably put on as many as we can fit." Mint answered. "But there seem to be only about fifty total. Let's hope there aren't more worlds than that."

Ranpha pressed one onto the skin above her ribcage in an attempt to be bold. She ran her hand over the spot once it hit bone and didn't feel much difference.

"It feels about the same, from the outside at least. What does it look like?" she asked a bit nervously.

"Well, other than it being a pale patch on your tan, fine." Forte said, placing a few of her own. She didn't have a meticulously maintained (and uneven) artificial tan to worry about.

Mint and Milfeulle were the first to pick up the golden pills after finishing with the affixers. It wasn't easy to swallow them without water, but went without mishap. Once again, the issue of Normad came up, but he assured them that his own translating software should be able to handle whatever the gold spheres could. No one talked much since they were beginning to worry about how long they had until Justin sent off the Drone. If they couldn't find the rip in time, it wouldn't matter how well they had prepared. One by one they stepped into the scanner, and stepped out able to see a series of colored words on their wrists and Normad's "wing".

"We're going to have to work out what order to use them in." said Forte. "How shall we go about it?"

"NOT janken." Ranpha snapped, remembering that horrible truck ride.

"No dice." Vanilla added, surprising them. They all understood her objection though. She had been gravely injured in an attack by giant dice, and had thought she had lost Normad forever.

"No drawing lots." added Forte, remembering that horrible dinner cruise.

"I know! We could flip a coin!" Milfeulle suggested brightly.

' How would that work with six of us? '

"Well if we can't do it by chance, we should do it by qualifications." Ranpha stated decisively. "I should be first because no one here understands love and relationships better than I do!" She was getting fired up about the idea of helping bring people together through this. It was a perfect setup for a knight saves the princess (or vice versa) situation. What could be more romantic?

"Which is why all your relationships end disastrously. Makes perfect sense." Forte said sarcastically. "I don't really care when I go, I could care less about this kind of stuff."

_Ho ho ho… this is a great chance to toy with people's emotions. What delightful entertainment it will be! _The young telepath could already do this sort of thing by reading people's minds, but the psychological strain it put on her kept her from doing for too long. It was a perfect excuse to as be as manipulative she could be.

"Ranpha, what is needed is a sound mind and an understanding of psychology. I'm the one most qualified to interpret relationships."

"Look at that pretty pink at the top! Pink for love, the best one!"

They all turned their heads to the childlike Milfeulle, who was admiring the color of the first of the personal connections listed on their arms.

"We can't really avoid it…" Ranpha said sadly. "Her luck would have put her in first if we used any of the other deciding methods anyway."

"Agreed." Mint said resignedly. "Milfeulle, you can go first."

Suddenly a loud pinging sound was broadcast throughout the station, followed by a message.

_' Drone 34G-78 initiating dimensional jump. 180 seconds until departure. 179, 178… '_

"Then I'm second!" the blonde quickly exclaimed.

"Third!" the blue haired one swiftly followed with.

"Fourth." the redhead sighed.

"Fifth." the green haired devotee said finally.

' Well now that that triviality is settled we should all start looking for that Drone! '

"We know that!"

_' 162_… '

"Which way?"

"The way we didn't come in from!"

_' 158… '_

"There's a sign! It's this way!"

_' 83… '_

"Not this room!"

"Then keep moving!"

_' 15… '_

"There!"

It was shaped roughly like a robotic flea, and about as large as a grill. And it was almost done creating an area of bizarre distortion that it would no doubt leap through to head for the first universe on Justin's itinerary.

"Last chance to bail out girls." Forte said as they approached the center of the room. There wasn't time to look for where Justin might be or for anything else.

"We'll be fine as long as we go together." the lucky girl said bravely. There was nothing else to say. They steeled their nerves and followed the Drone through the rip one by one.

-----------

Beyond the rip there was a void. There was no light, no sound, no temperature, nothing. They couldn't feel their bodies or their surroundings.

((Ahhh!!!))

((Ranpha?))

((Incredible, we seem to have no physical forms, but our consciousness remains. And we can communicate with our thoughts.))

((Yeah, yeah. All very fascinating.))

((This is weird! Do you think this is what it's like when you go in a black hole?))

((Don't you remember that giant black hole in the center of our galaxy we set off? Time slows down in a black hole. We'd still have had our bodies until we died of old age once we went beyond the event horizon. This is _nothing _like a black hole.))

((No body… I have no body… I'm dead…))

((You're not dead! You're just… disembodied. Like astral projection. Remember, when you were fifteen you were really into that? Remember?))

--------

There was a shock to their systems as there were suddenly things to sense around them. Colors had never looked richer and smells had never been sharper. For an indeterminable period of time they stood, moving their bodies in fascination after having lost them during the travel between universes.

"Air, there's air."

"It's so yummy too!"

"Shatoyan would have told us to use spacesuits if there weren't air." Mint said curtly.

"Or maybe she assumed we wouldn't be stupid enough to forget them." Forte said ruefully.

They were lucky enough to have arrived it what seemed like an ordinary temperate forest, with grass and shrubs not unlike those on human terraformed planets.

"Fluffy…" Vanilla sighed happily as she hugged her admirer's plush form. It was a delightful texture after the nothingness.

' Oh Vanilla-san, truly this must be an expression of your love for me. '

"Sorry, but I think she's just happy to have something to hold onto." quipped the shortest angel.

"Such a beautiful man…"

"Huh?"

All eyes turned on the boy crazy angel. She had apparently seen another human. Three of them shuddered when they saw the Mars symbols flashing in her eyes.

"Oh dear lord not this…"

"Over there!"

There was a blue haired man and a red haired woman who looked to be between Ranpha and Forte's ages coming through the woods towards them from a long way off. With them was an animal that seemed similar to a cat, or more like a walking fortune doll. They both were dressed in white clothes with black boots and gloves. Both were emblazoned with giant red R's, meaning these were probably uniforms.

This human presence was enough to make them forget for a minute that there was a robot on the loose searching for souls…


	2. Rules

Chapter Two – Rules

**Chapter Two – Rules**

Location: World of Pokémon

Mint watched the group of three approach and had a sudden thought. She turned to Vanilla and whispered,

"Given the circumstances, perhaps you could let me have use of my powers? At least on those in these other worlds?"

"Listen too closely to the cries in the distance and you may not like what you hear."

That was of course, a yes. A yes with a warning, which was thoughtful of her. A year or so ago the cryptic message would have been full of talk about retribution for sins and the devastation caused by intrusion into privacy. Certainly it wouldn't have contained any concern for Mint's well being. Mint didn't often feel the need to talk about the agreement between her and Vanilla. On the one hand, Mint's telepathy could be very powerful and useful. On the other hand, it caused her great psychic stress and left to her own devices she used it to inflict suffering on others for her own amusement. Of the troupe, Vanilla had the best understanding of the heiress' dark nature, and knew things about her that if told to the others could ignite true hatred. So the silent deal they had come to was this: Mint never used her powers in conjunction with her darker tendencies, and in exchange Vanilla never revealed her darker secrets. Occasionally, like now, Mint asked permission to use her powers in a questionable manner. It had taken a long time before the religious girl had found the telepath trustworthy enough to agree.

Ranpha meanwhile was beginning to walk towards the blue haired boy coming through the woods, apparently not bothered that he already had a girl with him. Forte roughly grabbed her and spun her around to face her. There was going to be none of this while they were on such an important mission.

"You better get those thoughts out of your head and parts south quick!"

The trio was coming closer, so Forte pulled her junior partner behind a large tree.

"Ow! Forte! Now I can't see him…"

"You're going to have to get used to this now, because it's going to be a big problem for you, I know. You HEY! Eyes on me. Listen. You cannot fall in love with any guys you meet in these other worlds."

"Like hell!" she said breaking the hold the redhead had her in. "Why not?"

"Because when this is over you're going to be in different universes. Not only that, but it'll interfere with your ability to look at their bonds with other people if they're taken."

"But what if I meet the one I'm destined for?"

Forte slapped her head in embarrassment. _She said that way too sincerely. Why does she have to be such a girly-girl about this one thing?_

"Do you really believe your 'destined love' would be in another universe? Then you never would have met them if we hadn't happened to end up on this mission."

The first lieutenant had a point, even if Ranpha wouldn't admit it to her.

"Fine, but that doesn't mean I'm going to pass up a free meal if it comes my way."

"Grossly put, but I can live with it."

She stepped out from behind the tree pulling her teammate with her. Their hearts sunk a little as they saw that their discussion had left Milfeulle with the perfect opportunity to greet the approaching natives.

"Hi there R-sans!" she greeted them waving. "Could you come talk with us for a while?"

The three strangers looked a bit startled. The red haired woman was the first to speak.

"Um, what for?"

"We're just passin' tru ourselves," the feline creature added hastily, "Don't know da place at all!"

"And we haven't even done anything bad today, really!" the man finished nervously.

"'Today'?" the oldest members said together quietly.

At that moment, a red light emerged from one of the orbs on the belt of the woman. The light touched the grounded and from it materialized an upright blue blob. It had a pained expression on its face and clutched its head as it called out.

"(I'll talk with you!)"

"Gah!" "Wha, what is that thing?"

Mint stepped up to her older compatriots and tugged on their sleeves.

"The humans can't understand that creature's speech." she whispered to them. "It is sentient and powerful, but prone to releasing itself from that ball on a whim. Just act friendly but tough to these people. They're intimidated because we outnumber them and surprised them."

Milfeulle of course was kneeling in front of the creature, ready to carry on the conversation with it since its companions were being less social.

"Thank you Blob-san! My name is Milfeulle Sakuraba, age eighteen. We're the Angel Brigade, and we've come to help save your world."

Forte sighed but didn't complain since the forward approach saved them time.

'Their universe Milfeulle, _universe_.'

"(Call me Wobbuffet please.)"

The strangers looked at her incredulously.

"You can talk to Pokémon?" the human pair said in unison.

"We can talk to anything with a language." Forte said as she walked up to Wobbuffet and its associates. "We don't know how much time we have so let's make this quick. I'm Forte, she's Ranpha, she's Mint, she's Vanilla, and that's Normad. There's a robot called the Drone coming here, and it's going to try and abduct someone from this universe to use as a link to our universe."

"Wait, you're from another **universe**?!" the woman said in shock.

"I, I'm going to have to sit down for this." the man said as he slumped to the ground. Ranpha smiled and sat down beside him.

"Yes, but I don't think our worlds are all that different."

The Angels explained what the Drone was capable of and learned the natives' names. Jessy, James, and the Pokémon Meowth. They seemed a bit frightened, but weren't very skeptical. They did however, request the privacy of a brief conference.

"Okay, we've been through threats to the world before, but a soul capturing robot from another dimension?"

"That's a bit much, even on the scale of what we've seen."

"(I like the one with pink hair!)"

"What the heck do they expect us ta do anyways?..."

"Do they really think we can't hear them from here?" Ranpha whispered to Mint, standing as they were only a few yards away from the bizarre quartet.

"Yes. But try not to bring attention to the fact they're a bit... dim."

"Ahem, we have unanimously decided," Jessy announced a few minutes later, having returned Wobbuffet to the spherical red and white device it apparently lived in.

"That we'll help you in whatever way you see fit." James finished.

"Providin' it doesn't put us in any danger." Meowth added. His red haired partner gave him a kick in the hindquarters, not wanting to upset the rather scary Forte.

Milfeulle was delighted.

"Well, in that case we should all have a nice lunch together!"

After finding a suitable clearing, they did just that. The trio were incredibly grateful for the food (provided by Mint from her bag), much to the Angel's bemusement. Not really sure of what else do but watch and wait, they took advantage of the temporary lull in excitement. It was a peaceful lunch break, and their new companions were content to simply relax afterwards. It didn't last long.

"They're gone! Gone! This can't be true!!"

A distressed young girl shrieked from further in the woods.

"More people?"

Mint began listening for the girl's thoughts, wondering if the disappearance she was shouting about could have been caused by the Drone. The others quieted their eating to better hear what was going on. A young boy's voice responded to the cry of distress.

"Hey May, is something wrong?"

"Yeah, what's gone?"

So there were at least three people. Milfeulle wondered if she should go and help, but Ranpha shook her head. Their lunch companions apparently recognized the speakers and didn't seem to want to reveal their presence.

"It's awful Max, Beautifly and Bulbasaur's Pokéballs, they're gone!"

Well, the Drone certainly could have taken one of them for a soul from this world, but why two? the telepath wondered.

"Let me guess." The older man began angrily.

"Team Rocket!" The boy finished.

The startled look on the faces of the human partners and their feline friend were all Normad and the Angels needed to see.

'YOU are this Team Rocket.'

"Yes, that's us." Jessy said plainly.

"'Haven't done anything bad today', huh?"

"But we haven't!" James responded to Forte's accusation, looking honestly confused and a bit frightened. They could vaguely hear the girl with lost Pokéballs ranting about what she would do when she caught the thieves.

"They're being honest," Mint said tersely, "They haven't been able to steal anything today, but in any other case that girl May would absolutely right."

"Then it was someone else what stole it."

"Which is what I'm trying to figure out, now please hush!"

Milfeulle looked to her new friends, a bit perplexed but willing to go with the flow. Okay, so they were criminals, but they didn't seem like bad people. The Rockets and Angels peered carefully through the bushes to May and her two human companions standing around a tree stump with a sheet over it. She was a slender brown haired girl about ten years old. Max was a younger boy with darker hair and glasses who seemed to resemble her a bit, perhaps a brother. An older boy who didn't seem related completed the trio, watching them with concern through his very narrow eyes. The little boy was inspecting the ground around the stump.

"Hey May, look at this. These tracks look like they're leading away from right where you had your Pokéballs."

Forte flinched. The tracks looked rather rodent like. She ran her hand over a few of her gun handles to reassure herself everything was in control.

"They're pretty fresh, so whoever made them must be close by."

Eep!

"And whoever made them must be the thief too! Soon to be a very sorry thief."

Unlike the gunner Mint was relieved by this news. Animals, including these Pokémon had much clearer thoughts than humans. She sifted carefully through the chattering and cawing voices of the creatures of the forest, hoping that the man was right.

"Why are we getting involved in this?" Ranpha whispered.

'Any being in this area could be the one abducted. Weren't you paying attention??'

The martial artist gave a distracted bop to the plush toy.

"Yeah, but what if following those kids leads us away from the Drone? We don't even know where it's popped up yet."

"Still, it's better to follow the people we've found than just sit around waiting for it. You coming with us?"

The Team nodded to Forte, indeed seeming intimidated but not too reluctant to begin with.

'Consorting with criminals, only you would sink so low Forte… eh, Vanilla-san? Where are we…?'

As usual, no one was paying attention to Normad's protests as the two groups set off to follow May and the others.

'Oh well. It is better that they have you with them to provide moral guidance. Who knows what they'd get into otherwise?'

Their shadowing led them higher up into the mountains. Along the way May and company met up with another pair of their friends, one of whom was a teen boy with a cap named Ash, and the other whom was a large yellow rodent. Forte had to open and close her fists rapidly to relieve the tension. Milfeulle was smitten with it; its zigzaggy tail, its pointed ears, and those cute crimson cheeks.

"What is that adorable thing?" she asked the Rockets.

"Pikachu."

"We've been chasing it for years."

"But it always gets away."

"Why would you steal someone else's Pokémon? Are they really valuable?"

Ranpha had been upset to learn that James was a crook, but she had accepted that he was just a dangerous man who had to live outside the law to be free (i.e.: he was too attractive for her to really care). She used her question as an excuse to slip her arm around his, walking closely beside him. Jessy raised an eyebrow. Apparently this was unusual, though she couldn't think why that would be. Surely plenty of girls swooned for his aristocratic features and flair. Well, no matter. All the better for her to indulge herself for the moment. She didn't hear Normad chuckle softly to himself.

"Yes, and powerful besides. That Pikachu is incredibly strong. It even defeated a Dragonite once."

"Very strong then." She had no idea what a Dragonite was, other than some kind of dragon perhaps, but was glad to talk with the handsome boy about anything.

They soon found out that thief was a Pokémon called a Linoone named Token who belonged to a local boy, Kimmy. It had apparently been hording items it found or stole for some time now. When May explained her dilemma Kimmy and his parents led them further into the mountains to look for Token's hidden stashes. The Team and Brigade kept out of sight, seeing no need to interfere. A certain gleam entered the Rocket's eyes when those hunting for the lost Pokémon happened across a hidden pile of very rare and precious objects.

'Hmph! You're thinking of mischief, aren't you?'

"Us, mischief?" Jessy said sweetly.

"Uh, you already told us you're thieves and kidnappers. So yeah."

"I think we should let them go off and do whatever they're planning." Mint said flatly.

"What??"

"It's for the best. I have my reasons, believe me. Let them go."

"You're really serious? Thank you so much for being understanding. You really are a bunch of angels, I mean that." James said beaming first at Mint then Ranpha.

"Well, we won't bother you anymore; just tell us when you need to get to saving the world and all." Jessy added as the Rockets slunk off to their dirty deeds.

'It's the universe. Such a crass girl, who can't even listen when she's being told something so important!'

"You're sure of this Mint? Really, really sure?" Forte asked sternly watching the criminals leave.

"Entirely sure."

She spoke with such conviction that even Normad ceded to the plan. They found a thick patch of trees to watch the ones looking for Token from and waited.

"Find anything?" Ash asked Kimmy after another half hour went by.

"Nothing I'm afraid."

The boy looked up the cliff to his left sadly, and was surprised to see his missing friend standing there, cheeks stuffed with what were likely the missing balls.

"Hey it's Token!"

The others turned to look up as well.

"Look at its cheeks! There's gotta be something in its mouth!"

"Not just something," May replied as the other searchers gathered them. "That Linoone has my Pokéballs!"

Milfeulle wanted badly to go ask it to give them back, knowing how worried she'd be in May's shoes. But she trusted Mint, and stayed put. Kimmy called out desperately to his friend.

"Token, those Pokéballs aren't yours! Give em back now!"

Token seemed a bit taken aback, and shook its head in defiance. The Angels noticed a large round shape ascending from behind the cliff. In a moment it became clear it was a Meowth shaped hot air balloon with Team Rocket at the helm. Before anyone could react to its presence it deployed a net that opened on impact with the furry Pokémon's body. To the horror of the assembled searchers the captured Linoone was dragged through air, suspended by a thick cable.

"Mint…" Vanilla intoned.

"Just let it be." the little one replied. "This happens all the time, and it never works."

"Someone took Token!"

The Pokémon struggled ineffectively as Jessy responded haughtily to Kimmy's anxious mother.

"Prepare for trouble, we're not someone, we're us."

"And make it double and stop all the fuss."

Forte and Ranpha watched the balloon in near disbelief.

"Uh, Mint, what are they doing?" Milfeulle asked befuddled. The blue haired girl sighed.

"They're saying their 'motto'. This little theatric is one of the main reasons their thefts always fail."

The Team continued their ascent while making a rather bizarre mission statement of sorts.

"To protect the world from devastation."

"To unite all peoples within our nation."

"To denounce the evils of truth and love."

"To extend our reach to the stars above."

"Jessy!"

"James!"

"Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now or prepare to fight fight fight!"

"That's right!" Meowth joined in.

"(Good to see you all!)" Wobbuffet called out after freeing itself once more.

"(For sure.)" An excited floating Pokémon of some kind freed itself from ones of James' Pokéballs to chime in. Forte couldn't help snickering a bit.

"Still think James is cool?"

"Well, er…" Ranpha hesitated, feeling embarrassed on her crush's behalf. She let the question hang unanswered, not wanting to admit defeat.

"Team Rocket!" the four human friends said in angry unison.

"(Not you dumb fucks again!)" Pikachu added from Ash's shoulder. Apparently it had a bit of an attitude.

"Let's face it, Token's pickup ability was in overdrive anyway, right?" Jessy sounded almost conciliatory, if it weren't for the venomous edge of sarcasm.

"That Pokémon's nothing but a common criminal!"

"Yeah! And it takes one to know one!"

Mint motioned for the Angels to follow her in pursuit of the aircraft as it drifted away. They weren't the only ones. Token's human began to chase after the thieves, climbing straight up the rocks of the cliff and shouting uselessly after them.

"Come back! Get back here!"

"Got to admire that determination."

"Give back my Token right now!"

James scowled at Kimmy from his lofty position.

"Unknown twerp, giving chase."

"Get ridda him!"

"I'll do the honors!" Jessy said throwing one of her Pokéballs toward the boy. "Seviper, use Haze!"

Seviper was huge black serpent, with a horrible bladed tail and bright scarlet fangs. Even Milfeulle moaned a little in fear as it bared its terrible teeth.

"(Cough your last child.)"

A cloud of acrid smoke issued from the snakes mouth, blinding Kimmy as he struggled to scamper up the loose rocks. They gave way and he fell to the hard ground, landing in pain. Ash and Pikachu called out to him as they heard the thud.

"Token's doing something." Milfeulle called out as she saw the Linoone spit out the stolen orbs. She watched the scene growing further behind her as Kimmy's mother scooped him up into her lap.

"No!"

"Kimmy!"

"Are you okay?"

He groaned, straining to get up.

"Give back Token…"

May noticed that her Pokéballs had rolled near her feet after being released and picked them up happily. Ash growled at the escaping criminals.

"Team Rocket again. Pikachu, go and help Token now."

"(On it!)" the yellow mouse affirmed as it sprinted off to the rescue. Mint smiled.

"It won't be long now."

"Oh no you don't." James said as a he released one of his Pokémon. "Go Cacnea!" A rather spookily faced... cactus?! materialized from the ball and latched loving onto the boy's torso.

"(I'm so glad to see you!)"

"Cacnea please," he begged trying to push the plant Pokémon off, "Do I look like a teething ring?"

Ash wasn't waiting for the odd duo to be ready; he was already on top of things with the next strike.

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail to cut the net, go!"

"(Right on!)"

With a mighty leap the rodent launched itself from the net and swung its glowing tail at the cords at its top. Milfeulle cheered at the awesome display.

"(Aaaand, you're outta there!)"

The trap now severed, Token plunged to earth.

"(Ah I'm falliiiiing!)"

"Token!" Kimmy jumped up to catch them. Jessy glared at Pikachu in frustration.

"All right then, we'll just take Pikachu. Seviper, Poison Tail!"

The Seviper stabbed its wicked appendage at its opponent again and again, but the mouse was far too agile. It hopped onto the reptile's head and latched on. No amount of shaking or twisting would loosen its grip.

'Such violent creatures.'

On Ash's instruction Pikachu unleashed a massive amount of electricity from its body, sending Seviper into convulsions. It then used its tail to toss the serpent at the retreating Rockets. The Angels gasped in awe and horror as Pikachu's bolt of lightning followed Seviper's arc through the air to shock the hapless thieves. After a few seconds they all turned to look in incredulity at the utterly calm Mint.

"We don't need to intervene just yet, this all perfectly normal." she stated evenly in response to the common question in all of their minds.

"'Normal??'"

The attack ceased and the balloon was now covered by a thick cloud of smoke.

"Yes. Just watch."

Ash seemed to agree.

"Good shot Pikachu."

"(I still got it!)"

"Don't celebrate just yet."

The smoke cleared to reveal the Meowth balloon had been replaced by one colored like a Pokéball.

"No way."

"See?"

Milfeulle sighed in relief as Team Rocket chuckled in triumph.

"Surprised to see us still hanging around?"

"We made a few upgrades so we wouldn't have to leave the party so early today."

Meowth pulled out a remote control.

"And what's a party without Pikachu invited?"

A second net shot out and trapped the rodent before it could escape.

"(Huh? Oh man!)"

"Oh no!"

In a flash the capped boy was after them.

"Pikachu!"

"Now that we have Pikachu you can keep your Linoone!"

"(I'm getting out of here.)"

"Now we'll leave."

"By choice."

"Mint," Milfeulle asked nervously, "If we go after them then we'll have to leave the others."

"Hmm…" She contemplated their options for a moment. "I think we should stay with the children."

"You better know what you're doing," Forte said as they switched directions.

As they neared the group on the ground Kimmy was apologizing to Ash. The teen was the only who didn't notice them approach.

"I'm sorry, you tried to save Token and lost Pikachu."

He smiled.

"Don't worry. I'll get Pikachu back before you know it."

"Let's see you try!" the Rockets taunted.

"Um, hello young ladies. We're in a spot of trouble here. Did you need something?"

For a moment the focus was shifted to the Brigade. All but Token's. Milfeulle began to introduce them but the Linoone bounded off after the aircraft.

"(I'm gonna save you buddy! Hold on!)"

"We're the Galaxy Angels, and we're here to save your world."

'Universe.'

"But first let's get your friend back."

Ash nodded. It seemed almost like he was used to that sort of thing. The narrowed eyed boy seemed to be off in another world himself.

"Angels, a more perfect word for such lovely ladies doesn't exist. My name's Brock, and I'll help you save the universe however I can." He took Ranpha's hands in his own as he went down on one knee. She was speechless for a second.

"More importantly," Forte said amused, "What's up with your furry pal?"

Token had covered quite a bit of distance.

"I guess it really wants to save Pikachu." Max opined.

Ranpha pulled her hands free and pointed after the Linoone. "What do you think cutie?"

Brock turned beet red and pulled himself up to answer.

"Um, well Team Rocket's balloon is round like all those things we found in Token's hut. It's chasing after it just like a Pokéball."

She smiled at him in thanks. "You're so smart." He melted into a goofy look of utter contentment. The bespectacled younger boy tugged him away from her by the ear, but it didn't seem to have much effect. May whispered in the blonde Angel's ear.

"Careful with him, okay?"

"Of course."

"Now I remember," Kimmy said, oblivious to the adults, "When Token and I used to play fetch. We used to have so much fun playing with Pokéballs back then. Of course, that was when Token was still a Zigzagoon. But for some reason when Token evolved into a Linoone, we stopped playing together."

"That's it!" Brock exclaimed, smiling back at Ranpha. "Back in Token's hut the only kind of objects Token had gathered in there were round ones. It can't just be coincidence. There's got to a reason Token's so fond of them."

Milfeulle pondered for a moment.

"Hmm… they remind him of dango?"

Mint grinned a little.

"It's because they remind him of when you would play together Kimmy. He still wants to now."

The others all gave the boy looks of encouragement.

"Token may not look and sound the same as before, but the bonds of love and friendship will never disappear." Brock reassured him.

"Then I'll take you if Token gets captured by the Drone." Milfeulle added, utterly confusing the natives.

"What?"

"That we can talk about later." Forte said trying to keep her temper in check. These were mostly simple people, no sense getting them worked up if they weren't totally involved in the crisis yet. "Let's go get that thunder rat for now."

Ash glowered at the impolite description of his best friend, but didn't speak up. Kimmy ran after the Linoone ready to give his all.

"Hey Token," he called out, "Want to play? Go get that ball!"

"(Really? Right on!)"

The sleek Pokémon leapt high into the air from the cleft it was perched on and amazingly landed on top of the air filled sphere.

"Yes!" 

And landing right after him was an insect like rust colored mechanical form.

"What??"

"That's what we're here to save you from!" Ranpha explained as they all ran after the robot.

"Ahh! What is that thing?!"

Jessy and James clung to each other tightly as the Drone pierced their balloon. As it fell to Earth Token freed Pikachu from the net and carried them both to safety. Their human companions called to them, still unsure of just what was going on. There was a loud crash as the Team made impact with the ground. At first only a few blue lights could be seen through the smoke, shining from the Drone's carapace. As it cleared the forms of the Rockets could be seen trying to get back from the unknown assailant.

"Some kind of Steel Pokémon?" Kimmy's mother wondered aloud.

'No, it's from our world, and it's not a living thing.'

"Even if they're crooks, they're still our friends in a way." Ash said holding Pikachu to him. May and Max shared a glance at that statement, but they knew the older boys had known the tricky trio a lot longer. There was a history there, and if something threatened them then he would come to help. "Pikachu, Thunderbo…"

"NO!" Mint shouted. "It can't be destroyed or we'll never get back to our universe to stop the whole thing."

"Please Angel Brigade," James pleaded as the droid gained on them, "Help us."

Ranpha pulled out a throwing knife as Forte pulled out a colt magnum while trying to hide the hives her allergies were getting her from being near Pikachu.

"You have a gun?!" most of the residents of the world said at the same time.

"You don't have guns?" she asked aiming at the Drone as it jumped towards Seviper. "I swear you guys are the worst criminals ever."

The serpent darted out of the robot's path, trying to lure it away from its respected mistress. But the ploy was a failure, and the Drone turned for the slower and easier prey. A few bullets hit their mark, but it was too little. There was a crackling sound and a scent of ozone as a strange tear opened in the middle of the air. Jessy screamed as it took her in its mandibles and hopped through, a single Pokéball falling from her belt.

"JESSY!"

James ran for the tear but was held back by Ranpha's strong arms. She held him close as he shook and collapsed to his knees.

"Just what is going on here?" May asked.

Mint told them about the space station and Justin while Wobbuffet and Seviper stared sorrowfully into the void of the rip.

"(Mistress…)"

"(We'll come save you once we find a way, just hold on!)"

Chimecho and Cacnea tried their best to comfort their blue haired companion. Meowth was having none of it however.

"Hey! Youse need to stop all this blubberin'. Jessy's the toughest girl I ever met, if anyone can take dis she can!" He turned and pointed at Milfeulle who was inspecting the reality hole carefully. "You said you gotta take someone with a bond with her back to your world to save her, right? So who's it gonna be?"

The lucky girl concentrated on Jessy as she stared into the void. She could feel it, the last remnants of the girl's soul as it had been taken from this dimension. She closed her eyes, and opened them again to see what form the bonds she had left behind were in. Many lines trailed off into the distance, a few thin red family lines, some orange crushes, some both business brown and rivalry black. A few were a sickly yellow, the color for enemies. Five were a thick vibrant braid of pet and master purple, friendship green and teammate tan. Two of these led to Wobbuffet and Seviper, one led to the Pokéball she had dropped before disappearing, and the others led further than her sight could make out, perhaps to other Pokémon she had fought along side. Ash and his friends were a strange coupling of green friendship and black rivalry lines. The two widest trails also led to people nearby. One extremely thick tan and green line ran to Meowth. The grandest had these colors and one more, and connected to the grieving James. Milfeulle walked up to him, still holding up her wrist where she could see the color chart clearly. The Pokémon stepped back knowingly to give them more space.

"You're in love with Jessy." she said happily. His jaw dropped in astonishment, followed by a few surprised quips from the others who knew them. The Team's Pokémon didn't seem shocked at all. "So you're the best one to go rescue her."

'That's odd. I had thought he was a homosexual.'

Ranpha let go of James to better toss her dagger at the annoying AI. It hit him square between the eyes and he decided it was better to be discreetly quiet for the remainder of this altercation.

"I'm in love with her? Jessy? For real?"

Meowth smacked him on the back of the head and growled.

"Yeah you big dummy. I don't care if you're embarrassed or scared or what but you gotta do what you gotta do."

"What do I…?"

Mint rummaged through her bag with a bear design and pulled out one of the affixers. She handed it to her pink haired compatriot, letting her handle the rest.

"You put this over your ribs. When we get back home we'll bring you there. And then you'll save her and the world and live happily ever after."

"Sometimes you say a bit too much Milfeulle."

As the girl placed the tiny hexagon in James' gloved hand he felt a sense of purpose rise up in him. The cat was right; he had to do this no matter what the cost. He lifted up his shirt and put the device into place, waiting until it was firmly attached to the bone before standing up.

"For Jessica, I'll do it."

"Hurray! She'll be so happy when you come for her, I just know it."

"I'm sure she will," Ranpha said with a sad smile.

"Hey," Ash said as the Galaxy Angels began to head for the Drone's tear. "James isn't the only one who can do something right? We can't just hang around doing nothing while the whole universe is in trouble."

Vanilla surprisingly was the one who spoke.

"Pray for your friends. That is enough."

The natives, human and Pokémon, just looked at each other, and nodded. With that they began to step through to the next dimension, inspiring Brock to take Ranpha's hands in his again.

"My gorgeous angel, will I ever see you again?"

She smiled at him, and leaned in to him a peck on the cheek.

"Absolutely."

Forte slapped Ranpha's back with the hand she wasn't using to keep from sneezing as they left. Back in the void she scolded her further.

((What the hell were you doing that for?))

((It was out of sympathy. He was obviously a very lonely and desperate man. Good taste though.))

((He's a male you.))

((What?!))

((At least he's not in love with someone else, like that pretty boy is though. You really do have bad luck with men don't you? Hohoho.))

((Want to test how many knives I can fit in you before you burst? Then shut the hell up.))

For a second time, they arrived in an unknown place. This time it seemed, they had ended up in a large castle's courtyard. Unfortunately they seemed to already be surrounded by a large number of people. The folk were dressed in fancy looking tunics, armor and dresses and most seemed terribly busy. The Angels barely had time to wonder what was going on before a redheaded bureaucrat looking fellow strode up to them, seeming perfectly at ease with their sudden arrival.

"Ah, you must be mages from Mysidia teleporting in." Oh, he thought it was magic. Magic?? "You're just in time. Sir Cecil and Lady Rosa's wedding and coronation is in full swing and I'm sure they'll want all their friends to be there before they leave the throne room. Follow me ladies."

It seemed as good an idea as any.


End file.
